Epilogue: Redemption
by mangoaddict
Summary: Last in my Salvation Series. Tess' son comes to an understanding. If you don't like Tess, you won't like this. You are welcome to read it, but consider yourself warned.


Title: Epilogue: Redemption

Disclaimer: I don't own anything

Author's Note: Make sure you have read all four other stories, (and especially the Author's note at the end of the last chapter of Mythology) or this will ruin everything for you. This is the final wrap up to the series, it takes place thirty-two years after Mythology. The song is _Dare You to Move_ by Switchfoot.

After the ending to Mythology, I feel like I need to say something about Tess. She got the raw deal her entire life (being left by Max, Isabel, and Michael, growing up with Nasedo, being the outsider when she met her family, having them all turn on her, and that is just the stuff that happened on the show...) After a while, it seemed almost as though she wasn't ever really supposed to be happy. That wasn't her lot in life, and I carried that theme through my stories. Which isn't fair, but then life never really is. So this last story sort of ties everything together and brings Tess a little bit of that peace that she had been looking for all her life.

As always, please, please, _please_ read and review. I would like to know what people thought of the entire series since this is the first multi-chapter story that I've finished.

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Epilogue: Redemption

_**Welcome to the planet  
Welcome to existence  
Everyone's here  
Everyone's here  
Everybody's watching you now  
Everybody waits for you now  
What happens next?  
What happens next?**_

_Thirty-two years after Mythology_

Alex Williams laughed as he watched his four-year-old daughter play with her food. She pushed the French fries back and forth across her plate, making them 'swim' through the mounds of ketchup. Her fingers were covered with red ketchup, salt, and grease. The ketchup and grease had somehow migrated to her hair, her face, and her shirt, but not her mouth.

"Alex!" Nikki Williams cried, horrified. She joined her husband at the table and admonished, "I leave to use the restroom for a minute and you let Tessa cover herself in ketchup?" She shook her head in mock annoyance. "Why on earth did I marry you?"

Alex grinned as Nikki carefully wiped the mess from little Tessa's fingers and face. "Because you love me," he replied cheekily.

"Do you love me too, Mommy?" their seven-year-old son piped up, tearing his blue eyes away from his Happy Meal toy.

"Of course, Kyle," Nikki replied, leaning over and kissing her son. "I love you, and Tessa, and Daddy very, very much."

"Max!"

Alex turned at the sound of an exasperated woman's voice ringing through the McDonald's restaurant. The woman was standing by the door, her hands on her hips, glaring out at the parking lot, at someone just behind her.

"I'm coming, Isabel," a voice replied, and then a man came into view.

Alex did a double take. He had no memories of his biological father, but there was no way the man standing in the doorway of the restaurant was not Max Evans. He looked like an older version of Alex, with the exact same expressions and coloring. His body was built the same way, and he exuded the same body language. Only his eyes were different, a darker brown instead of Alex's brilliant blue.

That man was his father. Biologically speaking, anyway.

Max was not his real father. He had a father, a wonderful man had taught him how to shoot hoops and taken him fishing when he was little. A father who had worked overtime in order to afford college for his son. And a father who, even now, called every couple weeks just to make sure that Alex hadn't been kidnapped by the FBI or the skins.

Alex grinned to himself suddenly, remembering the first time his adopted parents had seen him use his gifts. He had been yelling at them because they had grounded him for something (probably fighting in school or talking back to a teacher, but he couldn't remember the specific crime any more), and in his anger, he had accidentally exploded one of his mother's prize vases.

_Fourteen-year-old Alex stared in shock at the shattered vase in front of him, then turned wide eyes to his mother and father, who stood behind, speechless as well. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…" he whispered, worried about what his parents had just witnessed._

"_Alex?" Sara Williams asked, moving towards her son in concern. "How did you…?" She stopped, unable to finish the sentence. Turning, she glanced over at her husband, but John Williams was so surprised he could not even form a coherent sentence. He just stared in shocked silence._

_Alex bit his lip and debated not answering. But, unfortunately, the cat was out of the bag, they had seen him use his powers, and since he was loathe to mind-warp them, he only had one option._

_Tell them the truth._

_And he did. He told them who he was, and the few wisps of memories he had of his biological mother, everything he had read in the letter she had given him, and what he knew about his biological father. _

"_But if you tell anyone, they'll take me away," he finished, scared. "I don't want them to take me…" He bit his lip, then said quietly, "The government will dissect me or something. Like a lab rat."_

_Sara, without even thinking, placed a comforting arm around her son's shoulders and said, "No one is ever going to find out, Alex. Your father and I won't let anything happen to you."_

"_You aren't mad that I didn't tell you before?" Alex asked, surprised. "You aren't angry? You don't even know who I am anymore!"_

"_Of course we aren't angry," Sara replied. "And your father and I know exactly who you are. No matter what you can do, no matter who…or what…your biological parents are, you will always be _our_ son." She stroked his hair gently and said, "And we won't let anyone take you away from us."_

_John narrowed his eyes dangerously, and for a fleeting moment, Alex thought his father was mad at him. But when John spoke, his anger was directed entirely elsewhere._

"_Let them try!" he spat, looking between his son and his wife. "Let the entire federal government come down here if they want. Nobody is performing experiments on my son!"_

_**I dare you to move  
I dare you to move  
I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor  
I dare you to move  
I dare you to move  
Like today never happened**_

"Alex?" Nikki's voice called him out of his thoughts. "Did you hear a word I said?"

"No," Alex admitted, turning back to face his wife.

Nikki rolled her eyes and said, "What a surprise." She folded her arms over her chest and said, "I was telling you that my mother called this afternoon and invited us to her house for Thanksgiving dinner."

"We usually do Thanksgiving with my father," Alex objected.

Nikki nodded and replied, "I know. My mom invited him as well. She just didn't want it to be only her, you know. It's the first Thanksgiving since…" Nikki swallowed and looked away.

Alex reached across the table and placed a hand on Nikki's shoulder. His finger tips glowed briefly, sending a rush of warmth into Nikki's skin, and she smiled at him through the tears that had gathered in her eyes. "Of course we can go," he replied softly. He knew how difficult it was for Nikki and her mother right now. Only three months ago, Nikki's father had been killed in a car accident with a drunk driver.

"Your father won't mind?" Nikki asked hesitantly.

Alex shook his head. "Of course not," he replied. "He knows how important it is to be with family for holidays, especially after a tragedy like that."

Several years ago, when Alex was in his early twenties, just around the time he first met Nikki, his mother had been diagnosed with advanced breast cancer. She had died only a few short months after the diagnosis.

It was one of the few times Alex had wished that he had inherited his father's powers, and not his mother's. Mind-warp could not save lives.

"_Alex, baby, listen to me," Sara whispered, lifting a withered hand and placing it on her son's cheek. "Even if you had inherited those gifts, it might not have worked on me. This may just be my time to go."_

"_Mom, I love you so much," Alex gasped through his tears. Behind him, John swayed slightly on the spot, still in so much pain and shock at the diagnosis. Neither father nor son could believe that Sara would be taken from them so soon._

"_I love you too, baby. And I don't want to leave you. I am so proud of you, of the person you have grown into," Sara replied, her voice cracking._

"Liz, come on!" a new voice called, and then two more women walked into the McDonald's, followed by a tall man. Both woman were short, one with shoulder-length dark hair and doe-eyes, and the other with short blondish-brown hair and paler eyes. The man behind them had dark, tawny, broody eyes.

"I'm right here," the woman called Liz replied, shaking her head in exasperation. She walked over to the woman called Isabel, who was now standing by the counter, and said, "What're you getting?"

Isabel shrugged and said, "Hamburger, I guess." She turned and glanced at the others. "What about you, Maria, and Michael?"

"All we ever eat is McDonald's," the tall man grumbled.

Max shot an annoyed look at the other man and said, "Stop complaining, Michael. At least we are alive to eat."

"I just wish I could have gone back to Roswell with Kyle," Michael muttered, and Isabel nodded in agreement.

Max dropped his voice so that no one around could hear what he was saying, and only Alex's alien hearing allowed him to pick up the words.

"Well, the FBI and CIA aren't after Kyle, so he can do what he wants. We aren't so lucky."

"Yeah, but being on the run for three decades is no fun," Maria snapped.

"You didn't have to come either," Michael pointed out acerbically.

"Guys, why don't we just order our food?" Liz cut in, trying to stop an argument before it started.

Max shot her a grateful looked and agreed, "Yes, let's get some food."

_**Welcome to the fallout  
Welcome to resistance  
The tension is here  
The tension is here  
Between who you are and who you could be  
Between how it is and how it should be**_

Alex rubbed his eyes and wondered abruptly what his life would have been like if he had grown up with these people. If his birth mother hadn't been forced from the planet, if he had been able to live with people who knew about him and about what he could do.

"_Do you ever wish you had met your real parents?" Nikki asked. She was sitting next to him on the sofa, snuggling up against his body. "I mean, I know that you know some about Tess Harding, but what about your father? What about Max Evans?"_

"_Yes, I'm dying to meet the man who turned his back on his people and sold my mother out to their worst enemy," he replied dryly. It was two months before their wedding, and he had just recently told Nikki who he really was. Or rather, _what_ he really was._

_She had taken it all surprisingly well._

_After the initial screaming._

_Nikki pulled away from Alex and said, "I know he did bad things, but…"_

"_Tess is dead because of him," Alex cut in sharply. Nikki lapsed into silence and Alex sighed guiltily. "I'm sorry," he murmured, reaching over and pulling her towards him. "I didn't mean to snap."_

_Nikki shrugged and replied, "I shouldn't have brought it up. I know it is a sensitive subject for you."_

_Alex kissed her forehead and said, "It is, but you and I are going to be married, so I should be able to talk to you about that sort of thing. No matter how painful it is." He looked off into space, remembering the few details of his three months on Antar that his mother had placed in his mind. "I guess I do wish that I had known Tess. I don't care so much about Max, but I wish I had known my mother. And sometimes…sometimes I even wish I had grown up with her, and not my adoptive parents."_

"_But if you had lived on Antar, you would never have met me," Nikki replied, grinning mischievously. _

Alex had hated this Max Evans for so long, for condemning him to this life, but maybe things had worked out for the best. He certainly mourned Tess' untimely death, but he also knew that he cherished every moment he had spent with Sara and John Williams, and that he would never trade marrying Nikki and having Tessa and Kyle for anything.

Even a life with his real parents.

"Daddy!" Tessa cried suddenly, and Alex turned to her in time to see Kyle throw a packet of ketchup at his sister. "Daddy, Kyle's attacking me!"

Alex laughed and reached across the table to Kyle, catching his arm and saying seriously, "Kyle, don't throw things at your sister, okay? Can you apologize?"

Kyle grumbled something under his breath but nodded his head in agreement. He turned to Tessa and said, "Sorry, 'Essa. Didn't mean to 'urt you."

Tessa stuck out her tongue at Kyle and piped up, "You have cooties!"

This time Nikki intervened, admonishing Tessa. Alex let his mind wander back to his father and carefully tried to eavesdrop on the conversation.

The group had just finished ordering and were standing around, waiting for their meals. They looked around the restaurant, bored, and Alex silently thanked God that he had chosen to sit with his back to the counter. He didn't want to be recognized. He didn't want to face them.

He didn't want to face the past.

"Would you two quit arguing?" Isabel snapped at Michael and Maria. "Honestly, this is bad enough without having to listen to you yell at each other every few minutes."

Maria rolled her eyes and replied, "Sure, Princess. Whatever you say."

Michael smirked at the comment.

Liz was staring at Tessa and Kyle, watching the two young children. She hadn't recognized them, or Alex, but just the sight of kids made her heart clench painfully. Max, seeing the look in her eyes, whispered, "You still want children, don't you?"

"Yes," Liz replied. "Oh, God, yes I do."

Max let out a heavy breath and swallowed. He knew Liz desperately wanted children, and he did to. But they couldn't raise a child on the run. It wouldn't be fair to the child. And after what had happened with Tess and his son, he was reluctant to even have another child. He had already lost one…

"I know why you don't want a child, Max, but…"

"It's too late, Liz. We're too old now," Max protested half heartedly.

"Adoption," Liz murmured. "We could always…"

"Liz, we've been over this. It just isn't a good idea," Max cut her off. After a moment, Liz nodded, knowing he was right. Max sighed deeply and continued, "It isn't that I don't want children, Liz. Believe me, I do…"

"I know," Liz replied softly, her words sticking in her throat. "I know."

_**I dare you to move  
I dare you to move  
I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor  
I dare you to move  
I dare you to move  
Like today never happened  
Today never happened**_

The defeat in Liz's voice suddenly reminded Alex of a conversation he had had with his father once, when he was seven or eight.

"_Why didn't Mommy have me like other Mommys have other babies?" Alex asked. He had just read one of the 'where baby's come from' books that his mother had brought him from the library, and was curious as to why he had been adopted._

_John frowned at the question and tried to figure out how to explain infertility to a second-grader. At last, he said, "Your Mommy can't have children that way, Alex. She's got a… boo-boo… that doesn't let her do that."_

"_Oh," Alex replied, considering this. "Tell me about when you 'dopted me?"_

_John grinned. Alex often asked about the adoption, it was actually one of his favorite subjects. "Well, buddy," he said, "your Mommy and I went to the adoption center, and there you were, lying in a little bed, staring up at us with your beautiful blue eyes. And your Mommy and me, we fell in love with you at first sight. And we took you home to be our son."_

"_Daddy? Do you ever wish you had a real son?" Alex asked, his innocent eyes wide._

_John stared at his son in shock for a moment, then hugged him tightly. "Kiddo, you _are_ my real son."_

"Look," Maria said loudly, her voice carrying slightly through the room and jolting Alex from his thoughts, "All I am saying is that if Kyle can go back to Roswell and get married and have children and be happy, we should all be able to do the same." The frustration was evident in her voice.

"You know why we can't, Maria," Isabel explained, her tone sounding more patient than she felt. She looked around quickly, then lowered her voice and said, "And keep your voice down."

"I really doubt the FBI is hanging out waiting for us here," Maria snapped, and again Michael smirked at her comment.

Max glanced over at Maria and said, "Look, we just need to be careful. Always. We don't want to fall into the habit of being too casual, or something might happen." He folded his arms across his chest and glared at Michael, who was now rolling his eyes impatiently. "You got a problem with that, Michael?"

"I just think you are being overly cautious," Michael replied brusquely.

"I'm trying to keep us safe!"

"Why do you get to decide all that?" Michael hissed. "You aren't the king anymore, you don't get to make our choices."

"Guys," Liz said wearily, "can we just drop this?"

The other lapsed into a tense silence. Michael looked angry, Maria was still annoyed, and Isabel looked exhausted. Max was fuming, but he turned his back on the others and glanced over at the counter to see if their order was done yet.

"You didn't have to come with us," Isabel said in an undertone to Maria. "You could have stayed in Roswell and gotten married and been happy. It was your own choice to…"

"Izzy, please," Liz begged. "Just drop this for now, okay? We can argue later."

"Of course we can," Michael added dryly. "We are going to be stuck together for the rest of our lives!"

"I know I didn't have to come with you," Maria replied bitterly. "But I came anyway, because I care about you all, and now I am stuck living my life on the run. All my dreams, everything I wanted, gone!"

Max glared openly at Maria and said, "You aren't the only one who sacrificed a lot, Maria. You aren't the only one who is confused and lost and unsure about what they are supposed to do with their lives." He turned away, his eyes reflecting his inner turmoil. He hated this. He hated running, he hated always glancing over his shoulder, he hated arguing with his friends over stupid issues.

But ever since they had been forced to flee Roswell, that was all his life had been.

"Orders up!"

The voice rang through the conversation, and all eyes turned to the waitress behind the counter. She shoved a few bags of food towards Liz and snapped, "Here!"

Liz took the food, thankful for the distraction, and turned to Max. "Shall we go?"

Max nodded, and the group made their way out of the restaurant.

_**Maybe redemption has stories to tell  
Maybe forgiveness is right where you fell  
Where can you run to escape from yourself?  
Where you gonna go?  
Where you gonna go?  
Salvation is here**_

Alex frowned, watching the man who could have been his father leave the fast-food restaurant, followed by the rest of the group. Then he turned and glanced at his own family. Nikki was wrestling with a squirming Tessa, trying to wipe the grease from her face and fingers. Kyle was intently playing with Happy Meal toy, his face a picture of delight.

There had been hard times in his life. There had been heartbreaking moments, like when his mother had died. And there had been moments of anger and fear, especially when he was first figuring out who he was and he had felt so alone. And there had been moments of depression and unease as he discovered what it meant to be alien on a human planet.

But he was happy. He had a wonderful father, and he had had an amazing mother. He had friends and coworkers who cared about him and went out of their way to help him. He had a job that he loved and he lived in a neighborhood he felt safe in. And he also had the peace of mind that the planet he would have ruled was being ruled by someone else, someone stronger and braver who would guide it so much better than he ever could. And with that knowledge, he could be the person he wanted and not feel the guilt of abandoning those left behind.

And, what he was thankful for most of all, was that he had Nikki, Kyle, and Tessa. The people he loved more than anything else on the planet, on _any_ planet, and they loved him back.

"Is this what you wanted, Tess?" Alex murmured to himself, running a hand through his hair. "You told me in the letter that you left that, in the end, all you wanted from your life was a chance to give me a home where I could be safe and happy. Well, you did. I used to be so lost, and I used to hate you, hate that you had left me. I use to be furious that I had to discover who I was without you there to help me. But you gave me more than I had ever realized, and I see that now. You gave me the world and the life I wanted, and I'm not so confused anymore. I've found out who I am and I've found my way in life."

"And it's Max who is the one who is lost."

And somewhere far away, far beyond the understanding of mere humans or aliens, Tess watched, listened, and smiled.

_**I dare you to move  
I dare you to move  
I dare you to lift yourself  
Lift yourself up off the floor  
I dare you to move  
I dare you to move  
Like today never happened  
Today never happened  
Today never happened  
Today never happened before**_

_**

* * *

**_

Author's note: To everyone who was furious at the end of Mythology, I hope this in part makes up for what happened. I know it is bittersweet, but I would like to think that Tess, although she is dead, is actually happy now, because Antar is safe, Kyle and Jim are safe, and because her son, the one person who mattered to her the most, is safe and happy.

I am starting a Mi/I and M/T story, called Providence, and the first chapter of that will be up sometime this weekend. And I promise it will be happier than this story and Tess won't die or any of that.


End file.
